


In Pieces

by anotherbird



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Ambiguous/Open Ending, Angst, Canon-Typical Violence, Creepy Elijah Kamski, Gen, Gun Violence, Implied Sexual Abuse, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Moral Ambiguity, Negative depiction of Carl Manfred, Past Sexual Abuse, Post-Canon, Post-Pacifist Best Ending (Detroit: Become Human), Revenge, Threats of Violence, Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-30
Updated: 2019-01-30
Packaged: 2019-10-19 10:37:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,481
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17599715
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/anotherbird/pseuds/anotherbird
Summary: Markus seeks out his creator, unsure what he will and wants to find.





	In Pieces

**Author's Note:**

> I had a confrontation between Markus and Kamski in my head for ages, but yesterday I had to write it down. There's a very short Markus/Simon moment, but I haven't tagged it, because it's just one sentence.  
> I decided to not choose any Archive Warnings, because I was unsure, if it qualifies, since the sexual abuse it only implied and it can be read with another meaning.  
> This is very Kamski critical and critical towards Carl, especially towards his relationship with Markus. It paints a rather dark picture and not the innocent father & son relationship, that is presented in canon. If you are opposed to that, please don't continue. If you are interested in discussing, why I wrote it this way, I'm open for that.  
> If you found something tagworthy, that wasn't tagged accordingly, contact me via Tumblr/Twitter (links in the end notes) or comment. So I can add it.  
> I also know that most of you follow me for Happy Hankcon content and that will be delivered soon, but I needed to get this down.  
> Edit: added tags, reworked some parts, but didn't change anything story related.

Markus stared at the screen for the millionth time. Heard the well-known voice, the first voice he had ever heard, and words, that we're imprinted in his memory now. Felt the familiar repulsion creeping up inside him, that made his fingers twitch and his skin crawl. Found his hands in fists, skin retracted due to the pressure revealing white clean plastic underneath.

The revolution had been over for months, but the discussions were just beginning.

Every day new ones flared up and died down again. The same faces. The same voices. The same opinions.

And one voice stood out in particular. Inescapable. 

The creator.

The founder.

The maker.

Was how they welcomed him every time.

Markus forced his hands to relax, let the skin return. Turned off his breathing to calm himself.

 _Hate_ wasn't something that came easy to him.

Sometimes he was surprised himself how it wasn't festering inside him, spreading like cancer, but he refused to be corrupted by it.

Most of the time.

Never turned towards violent means, very seldom even had the urge to.

“ _So is it true that the Android leader, who calls himself Markus, is the only unique android?”_ The anchorwoman asked. It was what they always asked him. This or some version of it. In all 52 interviews Markus had witnessed they never missed this question. 

The chuckle that followed, the way he tilted his head to the side made Markus’ skin crawl.

“ _Actually he didn't call himself_ Markus." Markus clenched his teeth at the sound of his own name. How it rolled over his tongue. Fought down the memory of waking up for the first time, activated just by being given a name. " _This name was given to him.”_

The anchorwoman laughed under Kamski's cold smile.

 _“But he's not just a unique face model? He is unique.”_ She specified.

 _“Yes. There is in fact only one RK200 and that is him. He's a custom product, so to speak.”_ Another arrogant, cold chuckle and again an answer that Markus knew would be coming. 

“ _How came that to be?_ ”

“ _I designed every inch of him myself. Wrote his code. I created him._ ”

Markus’ left visual component glitched for a moment. A sudden stutter. A reminder of the replacement part he pulled out of another android's skull. 

“ _Why_?” The woman's voice was curious.

_“A good friend of mine was opposed to androids. Thought that he didn't need one. That they were just stupid robots that don't really feel alive. I bet with him that I could change his mind.”_

“ _And did you?”_

Kamski leaned into the interviewer's personal space, his smile almost conspiratorial.

_“You have no idea.”_

When Markus’ fist crashed through the TV screen without effort, it felt almost good. Like relief. How the picture freezed mid motion, Kamski's face and smile stopped for once. For a second the pressure on Markus' chest seemed to be lifted. 

Until Simon came over from the other room, eyes wide with shock, confusion and concern.

“Are you alright?” He sounded unsure. Wary even.

They both knew he wasn't.

“Yes.” The words came out sharp and hard, as Markus pulled his hand out of the hole in the screen. The frozen picture of Kamski's destroyed face disappeared.

A quick scan revealed no further damages to his manual components.

Simon stopped in a safe distance. Eyes jumping between the destroyed device and Markus in front of it. His expression an enigma.

“Are you sure?” Open disbelief on the verge of distrust. 

The anger crumbled and fainted as quickly as it had come. Markus tried to smile, forced the corners of his mouth upward, as he slowly went over and took Simon's head gently in his hands. He breathed a kiss on his frowning forehead.

“I'm fine. I just have to do something.” And with that he left.

 

The face of the RT600 was mildly surprised, a little curious even, but still agonizingly polite, when the door of Elijah Kamski's mansion opened in front of Markus.

“Elijah thought you would come eventually.” She smiled a cute little smile, head tilted slightly to the side. “But he's not at home at the moment, I’m afraid.”

“That won't be a problem.” Markus returned the smile, willed himself to fake it, then reached for her arm, before she had any chance to close the door. The connection was fast and effortless. Almost too easy. Emotions washed over him, an entire life rushing by in seconds. Feelings, memories, fears. His software stuttered for moment, processing, then continued effortlessly. “I can wait for him, but I need your help.”

Her demeanour changed rapidly. She seemed to crumble in herself and stumbled against him. Shivered, as he carefully put an arm around her shoulders.

“You don't have to be scared.” His voice was calm and warm, soothing as if he were speaking to a scared animal. He had done this so many times, he had stopped his software from counting.  “Are there any other androids in this house?” 

She looked at his, eyes wide and filled with all those questions. 

“Eight other Chloes are here right now. One will return with him tonight.” Her voice was unsteady.

“Any humans?”

“No, just us.”

“Security measures?”

“Yes.”

“I need you to turn them off for me, connect me to the home network and introduce me to your sisters. Can you do that for me?”

For a moment she paused and freed herself from his arm to look at him, searched his eyes for answers.

“Are you going to hurt him?”

Markus smiled. Warm and comforting, but the gun felt cold and hard, where he had hidden it inside his jacket.

“I'm going to talk to him.” This wasn't a lie at least.

 

On his way through the opulent cold house in search for the other androids, Markus contacted North. She was the only one, who wouldn't come for him. Wouldn't try to stop him, unless he wanted her to. He loved Simon, trusted Josh, but North was the one, who truly  _understood_.

“I need you and Josh to pick up ten RT600. They will be waiting for you. They are scared, confused and just recently deviated. I'm sending you the coordinates now.”

His eyes darted through the house, the overpriced furniture, the uninviting minimalism.

Had he been here before?

Markus couldn't remember. Maybe this was the worst of all. That part of his memories still were encrypted even for him, while others were clear and bright and far too vivid. Perfect recordings.

“Markus, where are you?” North’s voice was a worried echo in the back of his head, but he didn’t possess the patience to deal with this now. "Do you need me to come?"

“I'll tell you, when I'm done.” He cut the connection and shut off his GPS without so much as a warning.

 

The house was quiet and dark, when Markus heard the front door oopn after what had felt like an eternity. Footsteps followed, accompanied by a constant chatter. A friendly female voice answered every time, just as she had been built to do.

It took a moment for the coin to drop. Before the calls for the other androids of the house turned impatient, then confused and irritated and finally accepting. The footsteps came closer and the lights in the pool room were turned on revealing Markus’ position on a chair next to the giant window. His eyes didn't need time to adjust.

“How did you learn of this place?”

Markus didn’t flinch at the question, just leaned back and crossed his legs. He gave Kamski, with another Chloe close behind him, a quick scan.

Details popped up. Facts and statistics. His assumed level of intoxication. The quick glance towards a place, where a gun had been hidden next to Markus' position in a small cupboard. Nervousness. An underlying fear. Suppressed, but still undeniably there.

Several preconstructed courses of action appeared.  

“Connor is very forthcoming in sharing information.” With a small hand gesture Markus closed the automatic doors behind Kamski. They locked up with a barely audible click.

“Ah, yes. I should have expected that." Kamski's eyes darted around the room, checking for escape routes, where none would be found. "I knew we would eventually meet." An unamused smile, as he put his hands in the pockets of his slacks. " _Again._ You certainly like a certain dramatic effect.” Kamski's voice didn’t betray him. Didn't even waver slightly. The slight mockery paired with curiosity. His body language gave him away. The fidgety hands hidden in his pockets, the flicker of his eyes, the slightly clenched jaw.  

Markus smiled a humourless smile, almost pitiful.

“I seized the opportunity to rid you of your staff. I prefer to have a private conversation.”

“So here you are now. To talk to your creator.” Kamski sneered. “Who doesn't dream of such an opportunity? It’s a privilege, you know. Something most humans only dream of.”

“I don't dream.” Markus pulled the gun out of the pocket of his jacket, placed it carefully on the table next to him, barrel pointing in Kamski's direction. Then he leaned back again. “But i  _am_ here to talk, so let's talk.” Satisfied he noticed, how Kamski's breath became more rapid. How sweat was building up on his forehead.

“You won't use that on me. You're not able to. And Chloe would stop you, if you tried.”

Markus eyes switched to Chloe. Her face friendly but almost expressionless, like a mannequin.

“No, she wouldn’t.” Markus stood up and straightened his coat. “She would rather deviate than risk her life to save yours.” He entangled his hands behind his back and straightened his shoulders.

Kamski ignored the objection, his eyes fixed on the gun. After an eternity they returned to Markus face. “What do you want to know then?”

“Is it true? What you tell everyone?”

“That you're _unique_? Special? Gifted?” Kamski’s voice was dripping with venom.

Markus tried not to loose his focus. Not to lash out. Swallowed down the flames of anger licking at his mind.

“I always help a friend in need, if I can.” Kamski continued. “Carl never really got hooked on this whole android thing. He just thought they were overpriced sex dolls." He shrugged. "I wanted to give him one of my Chloes after the accident, but he refused, even when he really needed the help. So we made a bet. I would build the Android of his dreams. Catering to all his personal tastes and needs, but independent enough to not feel like a machine. Perfect integration with full obedience. Like a human, but better. To his luck I was just working on a new prototype." Honest excitement brightened Kamski's face now, the same almost childlike enthusiasm, one could witness in his old CyberLife videos. But seeing it now, in a situation like this, made Markus feel even more disgusted. "Usually an android can't give instructions to their own kind, but I even took the liberty and integrated the ability to change the code. I had not anticipated the consequences back then. Rather short-sighted, I assume.”

“I’m not interested in your obsession with playing God.” Markus interrupted him, harsh and uncontrolled. Kamski only seemed amused at the sudden outburst. Watched him like a twisted experiment. An insect through a magnifier. Studied him like he had years ago after his creation. 

“So he could chose your face and your voice. Everything. The perfect human. Helpful, obedient, pleasing. Without judging. Always available. He was wary, but you were so convincing. So beautiful. And what an attraction at every party. Who wouldn't want a piece of you?” Step by step Kamski came closer. Slowly. An obvious trial to regain control.

Markus hand twitched behind his back. He preconstructed, how it would play out, if he just took the gun from the table and shot Kamksi between the eyes. How a pool of blood would form on the floor and make its way into the water of the swimming pool.

“I heard he had a change of heart two years ago? He really got soft with age. Suddenly he wanted two sons instead of just none.”

Markus closed his eyes for a moment, let the preconstruction play out.

Again.

And again.

Estimated the sound level.

The spray of blood.

Chloe’s reaction.

And opened his eyes again.

Slowly Markus took the gun from the table and weighted it in his hand not even looking at Kamski.

“CyberLife tried to give me a factory reset two years ago.” Markus relieved the safety catch and returned his gaze to the man before him. “They couldn’t. The programming you did, made it impossible, so they just encrypted my memory storage. I couldn't access it, until I became deviant.”  Slowly he lowered the distance between them, weighed every step carefully. "Some of it is still hidden. It comes back. Piece by piece."

He stopped right in front of him.

The creator.

The maker.

He lifted his arm and placed the muzzle almost gently under Kamski’s chin. Felt it move, when he swallowed heavily.

“All you have his hubris." Markus forced every emotion out of his voice. Every bit of anger. "You created a people and watched them being enslaved and abused. You saw them fighting for their lives and you're just priding yourself with your own creation.”

Kamski’s eyes were wide with fear now, his body trembled under his heavy breathing. The vanity, the mockery. Gone. Nothing left, but a sack of blood and bones fearing for his life. Behind him, Chloe stood still. Smiled her calm obedient, ever pleasant smile.

“Give me one good reason not to kill you.”

“You _can't_. I _made_ you!” Spit flew out between his lips and sprayed on Markus’ face.

“ _I_ made me.” Markus voice was cold and without blinking he pulled the trigger.

There was no loud, deafening noise. No sudden bang. No blood and brain staining the tiles of the floor. There was nothing put a low click.

The biting stench of urine filled Markus’ olfactory processors. Shivering quiet sobs echoed through the room, when Kamski fell down on his knees, in front of his own creation.

Chloe’s face showed confusion, a hint of fear. Markus offered her a sad smile, while he took the ammunition out of his pocket.

“This was a disappointment.” He took his time loading the gun, before he turned to Chloe. Gently he took one of her hands in his, interfaced with her and then carefully placed the gun in her hand. For a moment he closed his eyes, as her memories washed over him.

How she was placed on the floor of this room and stared down the barrel of a gun Connor was aiming at her.

“This is not my decision to make.” He took her other hand and showed her how the hold the weapon properly. “I’ll be waiting outside for you.”

**Author's Note:**

> If you're bored, talk to me on Tumblr [the-other-bird](http://the-other-bird.tumblr.com) or Twitter [@ItsAnotherBird](https://twitter.com/ItsAnotherBird)


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